The present invention relates generally to extraction devices and more particularly to a double-headed tent stake driver and puller for use with a slide hammer.
This application is related to my copending and commonly assigned patent application “DOUBLE-HEADED TENT STAKE DRIVER AND PULLER HAVING TWIN RELEASE LEVERS” filed on even date herewith.
The utility of tents for providing temporary as well as permanent shelter is well known. Tents are available in a wide variety of sizes and configurations and are extensively used by the armed forces, for example, in areas where the construction of permanent shelter is not deemed practicable or desirable. While tent design varies, most tents utilize stakes driven into the ground to anchor the tent in place.
The design of tent stakes varies widely as well, but many stakes are, in essence, large, double-headed nails. In use, the stakes are driven into the ground, typically by the use of a sledge or pneumatic hammer, and the tent stays or cords are attached thereto to anchor the tent. When it is desired to lower the tent, the stake is pulled from the ground by a pry bar placed under the upper head of the stake.
This method of driving and pulling tent stakes, while effective, leaves much to be desired. For example, use of a sledge hammer often damages the stake or adjacent tent rails because sledge hammers are hard to control, especially when used by inexperienced personnel or in situations where the ground to be penetrated is hard, necessitating the use of great force. Personnel safety is also a concern since the swing of a sledge hammer requires a large space, and inattentive passersby can be severely injured. Moreover, the use of a pry bar for extraction of the stake is often disadvantageous because the stakes are easily bent or damaged because the extraction forces imparted upon the stake by the pry bar are curvilinear. Adjacent tent rails are easily damaged as well since the pry bar must be leveraged against a solid object and sometimes the rails are in the way of the pry bar.
A need exists therefore for an improved tool for use in driving and pulling double-headed tent stakes and the like. Such a tool would be lightweight, compact and easy to carry and use.